Sunday A&E: Pick 6

The best bets for the week ahead

Jan. 24, 2013

Free Energy returns to Des Moines for a show at 8 tonight at the Gas Lamp. / Special to the Register

Dancers disguised as penguins, frogs and other critters herd on stage for an Imago Theatre show called 'ZooZoo.' / Special to the Register

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1. The Philadelphia rock group Free Energy returns to Des Moines for a show at 8 tonight at the Gas Lamp, 1501 Grand Ave. Rolling Stone called the group one of the best new bands of 2010, and the group has performed on “The Late Show with David Letterman.” James Murphy of LCD Soundsystem produced Free Energy’s 2010 debut album, “Stuck on Nothing,” and earlier this month the band released a follow-up, “Love Sign.” $10. www.gaslampdsm.com.

2. Opera Iowa, the touring branch of the Des Moines Metro Opera, hits the road this week for a two-and-a-half-month showcase of John Davies’ “The Three Little Pigs” and Donizetti’s “The Elixir of Love.” All told, the troupe will perform for more than 60 schools and communities statewide, Monday through April 12. Find the full schedule at www.desmoinesmetroopera.org.

3. Three community theaters emerge from hibernation Friday with three different romantic comedies. Ames Community Theater presents the British farce “Not Now, Darling” at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday (except Feb. 3) through Feb. 10. $15. www.actorsinc.org. Ankeny Community Theatre opens “The Maginot Line,” about a gaggle of girlfriends and their suitors, at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday through Feb. 17. $12-$15 for adults, $10 for youths. www.ankenycommunitytheatre.com. And the Des Moines Community Playhouse pulls up the curtain on “Completeness,” about a romance between science geeks, with shows at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday through Feb. 17. $20-$29 for adults, $20 for students. www.dmplayhouse.com.

4. Instead of celebrating Wagner’s 200th birthday with a wordy song (Herzlichen Gluckwunsch zum Geburtstag, Richard!), let the Des Moines Community Orchestra provide the music at 2 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 3, at Sheslow Auditorium. The all-Wagner program includes excerpts from some of his greatest operatic hits (“Lohengrin,” “Tristan und Isolde”) and follows conductor Carl Johnson’s preconcert talk at 1 p.m. Free. www.desmoinescommunityorchestra.org.

5. Iowa State University pulls out some of its best finery for a new show, “Treasures of the Textiles and Clothing Museum,” which opens with a reception from 2 to 4 p.m. Feb. 3 in Morrill Hall. Among the highlights: a vintage Cyclone letter jacket and a 1915 dress worn by Carrie Chapman Catt (who would have a few choice words about the debate over Michelle Obama’s bangs). www.aeshm.hs.iastate.edu.

6. Dancers disguised as penguins, frogs and other critters herd on stage for an Imago Theatre show called “ZooZoo” at 2 p.m. Feb. 3 at Stephens Auditorium in Ames. $20 for adults, $12 for students. www.center.iastate.edu.